


Blood Over Ice

by pinkfire



Category: NCT (Band), WAYV
Genre: Blood, Figure Skaters Ten and Hendery, Ice Skating, M/M, Unhappy Ending, Why did I even write this?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-18
Updated: 2020-06-18
Packaged: 2021-03-03 19:13:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,776
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24790633
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pinkfire/pseuds/pinkfire
Summary: Maybe, in another life, their love story could have been beautiful.
Relationships: Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul | Ten/Wong Kun Hang | Hendery
Comments: 4
Kudos: 21





	Blood Over Ice

The cheering, the music, the grit of skates over ice. All sounds Ten has come to love, compressed into a unique melody recorded in his mind and played back on loop like a catchy pop song. But that will never beat the live audio, caressing his ears with the cool breeze that sweeps by, or more specifically, the air that he sweeps through. Gliding and swirling over the ice, letting the momentum take his controlled stretches and twirls through the air. It’s what he lives for. 

He’s been on the ice since he was eleven, and the only days he’s missed practice since were sick days. Even those days were rare, since a small cold was brushed off and pushed through, ultimately resulting in Ten passing out and collapsing onto the familiar freezing surface. He still never learned his lesson. 

At least his perseverance didn’t go unrewarded. He’s now one of the most famous figure skaters in the world, full of unfathomable grace and flexibility. Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul, three time NCT gold medalist, charmer, and most graceful man on the planet(according to a 2018 issue of Sports Illustrated with his makeup-clad face on its glossy cover.) 

It isn’t for the fame. It’s for the sensation of creating art with his body, contorting into beautiful shapes and jumping into refined twirls. Although he’s very proud of his achievements and his mentality leans toward loftiness every now and then, he has someone to keep him grounded. 

Wong Kunhang, better known as Hendery. He’s been Ten’s partner since high school. They both can remember clear as day when they agreed to work together and enter NCT’s couple figure skating competition. 

After discovering that they both had a passion for figure skating, they were inseparable. Outside of class and—to their teachers’ dismay—inside of class, they talked nonstop about things ranging from their dreams to useless trivia. It didn’t take long for them to start practicing with each other. 

Two months into their friendship, they were taking a snack break at their local hockey rink, throwing goldfish crackers at each other and messing around until Hendery brought up, quite suddenly, “wouldn’t it be funny if two guys entered couple skating?” 

Ten was taken off-guard, not by the statement itself, but by Hendery doing that thing where he chews at his nails with his canines when he’s nervous. He paused, the packaging of his chips crinkling under his fingers. Ten knows a hint when he sees one, and, although he hadn’t considered it before, it didn’t seem like the worst idea. In fact, he and Hendery had chemistry that Ten hadn’t noticed with any girl. “Would _you_ skate with a guy?” 

“I mean,” Hendery started, tugging at the zipper of his tracksuit and looking anywhere but at Ten, “only if you did it with me.” 

And that was that. They pinky promised to get in together no matter what. 

Unsurprisingly, they did, sweeping the nation with their gorgeous performances, which were previously believed to be possible with only male-female duos. Thanks to Ten’s lithe figure and soft movements, combined with Hendery’s strength, being a male duo didn’t hold them back. 

They made headlines and gained a massive following. The spotlight loved Ten more than it did Hendery, but Hendery never cared. It never turned into an argument, and Ten has always been astonished by that. Hendery is genuinely sweet and selfless, only passionate for ice skating and his family. Ten has never doubted that he’s 100% pure of heart. He’s lucky to have such an amazing partner, in fact, he’s secretly in love with him. 

He’s had these feelings for two years, but keeps them locked away for both of their sakes. If it makes things awkward, it’ll ruin the connection they have in the rink, and Ten wouldn’t be able to live with himself if he were a roadblock to Hendery’s passion. 

He’s tried to suppress and forget about his feelings, but it’s impossible. When they perform together, it feels like they’re dancing on frozen clouds, so close to heaven that they can hear the angels’ harps. They listen to the harps together, each strum of the chords vibrating through their veins and pulling them into sync. 

The trust they have in each other is so concrete, that it’s the only thing Ten can say is absolutely _real_. It’s more tangible than the scratchy sequins on Hendery’s collar, more reliable than gravity. 

Not to mention Hendery’s touches. So respectful and delicate, but the way he handles Ten like he’s a twirling baton, easily lifted and tossed, it feels amazing. When Ten is performing, he’s never cold, because Hendery is so warm and can make his skin sizzle with adoration at every caress and grip. 

“Hey, don’t be nervous,” Hendery soothes, sweeping two fingers through Ten’s ink black hair. The action only makes him more nervous, because he’s _so in love right now_. It’s one of those moments where the declaration of ‘I’m in love with you’ sits all antsy on his tongue, and his lips ache, begging to feel Hendery’s. “We’re gonna win this, I can feel it!” There’s Hendery’s positive attitude, accompanied by that adorable smile he flashes so genuinely. Ten has to bite his lip. 

They’re up next for the NCT 2020 figure skating finals, ready to awe the crowd and the judges with a new trick they’ve been slaving over the ice to master for a year. “I know, I know,” Ten says, unzipping his parka and letting their coach take it. He pauses to mouth ‘thank you’ before looking back into Hendery’s round eyes. God, they make his heart twist every time. The real reason he’s nervous isn’t their performance, it’s that he plans on confessing to Hendery tonight. “We’ll knock their skates off.” 

“Oh, geez,” Hendery scrunches his nose, giggling at Ten’s awful joke, “never say that again.” 

Their ears perk up at the announcers saying their names, and their coach is already ushering them onto the ice. The ice is smooth under the blades of Ten’s skates, immediately soothing his nerves, as it always does. 

They both put on blinding smiles and wave at the crowd, making a show of getting into position with fancy strides and a little spin from Ten. The crowd is going crazy already, clapping and hollering as they stand face to face, Ten’s hand on Hendery’s shoulder and Hendery’s on Ten’s waist. Hendery whispers a “you’ll do amazing,” before the music starts, and they’re off. 

Their glide around the rink is smooth and precise, just the way it was during practice. Ten knows he just has to breathe, let their harps take control, and everything will be fine, but today it feels like the harps have sped up. It’s now that Ten realizes the harps are an extension of his heart, beating rapidly as he extends his leg and slides through a curve only an inch away from Hendery’s warmth. 

He twirls into Hendery’s hold and gets hoisted into the air, stretching and curving his limbs into an aerodynamic pose that has him soaring over an ocean of ice. He notes that his limbs feel looser than usual, and that’s, well, not good. As Hendery rolls Ten down the side of his body and catches his waist, Ten curves his back, foot forward as he takes a deep breath and tries to regain his focus. 

He’s pulled back onto his own two skates and falls into rhythm with Hendery again, weaving his steps gracefully as they take a turn. Hendery looks into his eyes, warm and serious, silently asking if Ten is really okay with completing the move they planned. They have a backup move in case one or the other decides they aren’t up for it, but Ten doesn’t want to disappoint Hendery, who deserves the entire world, and definitely deserves Ten’s best. He gives a curt, barely noticeable nod, and Hendery smiles, sweeping Ten into his hands and tossing him through the air. 

This is where Ten has to spin, slicing his leg through the crisp breeze and landing into a backward skate, all while Hendery slides between Ten’s legs, where Ten can catch his hands and pull him back upright. 

It goes in slow motion, Ten can almost hear the sharp blade cutting the air. And before his skate can make satisfying contact with his frozen turf, it shreds through something that’s decidedly not ice, making him clatter forward onto the harsh floor, sucking in a sharp breath. It was Hendery. The blade of his skate landed on _Hendery_. 

It doesn’t hurt. Not the impact of his elbow against the ice, not his twisted ankle. Before he can even begin to worry about pain, he’s scrambling toward Hendery, tears welling up and smearing the red splatter across ice in his vision. 

He wipes at his eyes to see him, writhing in pain with wide eyes, clutching at the laceration in his throat and choking wordlessly on his own blood. “Hendery, no! No, no! I’m so sorry,” Ten sobs, pulling Hendery into his arms, feeling the warm blood soak into his own costume. He forgets that they’re in front of millions of people. His surroundings are void. “Please stay with me. I love you. I love you so fucking much.” 

He feels Hendery’s trembling, blood-soaked hand clutch at the back of his head, pulling him into a hurried kiss. 

Sharing a kiss with Hendery is something he’s dreamed about, fantasized over hundreds of times a day, but it wasn’t supposed to be like this. He can taste it all, the promise that Hendery has always loved him, the ‘thank you’ for every up and down they’ve shared, the forgiveness for Ten’s mistakes. These bittersweet, heart-wrenching flavors are so much more pungent than the metallic blood that smears over Ten’s lips and tongue, and he wants to pull away to look at Hendery one last time, but he’s a lot stronger, holding Ten’s lips to his. Until he goes still, listless over his lap and leaking a puddle of blood onto the ice. 

Ten tastes Hendery’s final breath, and his tongue will never forget it. 

It’s when the medics pull him away that it sinks in. When _he sinks_. It feels like the ice that held their heavenly dance has melted and collapsed underneath him, plunking him into a dark, freezing abyss. Every breath hurts, because his lungs don’t feel like they’re filled with air, they feel like they’re heavy with frigid water and blood, with the broken dreams that have melted underneath Hendery’s dead body. 

Maybe, in another life, their love story could have been beautiful. 


End file.
